The Oculus Rift A
technological marvel. Virtual reality, now at its finest apparently.
Virtual reality glasses are certainly becoming popular, and with
trending topics relating to 3D for the modern era (3D vision for your
desktop, and the idea of Google Glass virtual HUD on the go) has
created a notable resurgence. With the amazing things they can
achieve, it's more of a wonder they aren't used for more pragmatic
solutions. Which brings me to why a seemingly niche technology (for
entertainment) which utterly failed in the 90's is somewhat current
and relevant in today's world.
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| Lawnmower man - apparent pinnacle of VR awesomeness...Not. |
Throughout the 90's there
was a mass surge in virtual reality, and virtual reality glasses. You
practically couldn't get through a movie without running into someone
regarding the technology. It would appear, I'm not the only one with that sentiment. The over-aching problems, I firmly believe,
are rooted in a lack of a standardized platform, no professional
applications or or actual OS support/Interface design – and
certainly from an economic standpoint – lack of a major backer.
None of the big players really took it on, the wide variance of
platforms, no applications that were designed to interface with
virtual reality – cert iWear VR920
can go for under $500.
ainly no legitimate interface to speak of – all of this combined to make a very hard sell. Of course, with the price points (Which I remember sets going for 5 to 10 thousand when i was a kid in the 90's), it just wasn't meant to be. However, the sad part is the average display today, which only shows 800x600 is around $1000-$1,500 USD, though cheaper end models, such as the
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| Back...to the Future..wait, what? |
Of course, with all those
negatives, in a manner of speaking, its any wonder it's something
that still excites people, particularly in this day and age. Amazing
technology, thanks to Moore's Law, has grown the technology
necessary for virtual reality worlds, to a level commensurate with a
consumer-end product. With extraordinary platforms allowing us
relatively, unfettered access to a wide range of applications, big
players to take on various projects (Just look at Sony's VR sets,
like the new Prototype-SR), and a developed open market for
people to put in their own design aesthetic (and the hardware to back
it up), easily paves the way. If anything, the Wii, for instance,
has shown a clear desire for more interactivity in people's gaming,
as it won this generations console wars, selling almost 100million units. It led Sony to develop the MOVE for Playstation,
and Microsoft to develop the Kinect for the Xbox 360. Rather
than Niche, people are more and more, wanting these interactive
technologies to play with. All that really stands in their way is
price-point. Depending on your budget, grabbing a Kinect could have
been a bit more expensive than you'd like. Certainly if you're into
3D, the 3D vision could be a tough sell unless you've got some extra
cash on the side – after all getting the kid isn't the beginning, as
to efficiently use them, you need a monitor with some capability (and
for best results something 3D ready and/or 120Hz capable at least,
which combined can easily land you around $500 or so).
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| How immersive can a brick on your face, be? We'll see..see, get it? |
Certainly a bit of wonder,
but if anything, it's certain the with over 10,000 units pre-ordered already, the Oculus Rift is making waves. In a world
that now has access to the technological hardware to make VR
something of a pragmatic gaming solution, it's evident, regardless of
whether it's niche or not – there's a market for it, people are
craving it – the Oculus Rift may be the technology that brings
virtual reality worlds – virtual reality in general – to
the masses.
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